Bishops Concerned Over Federal Court Rulings Rejecting Marriage as Between One Man, One Woman

July 12, 2010

Fabric of Society Depends on Basic Legal Definition of
MarriagePosition Protects Roles of Fathers,
MothersMarriage Existed Before State, Not Open To
Redefinition

WASHINGTON—Archbishop Joseph Kurtz of Louisville, chairman of the United States
Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) Ad Hoc Committee for the Defense of
Marriage, expressed grave concern regarding recent rulings by a federal judge in
Massachusetts rejecting the definition of marriage as between one man and one
woman.

Archbishop Kurtz offered his remarks after two rulings on July 8
that held that section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) is
unconstitutional. Section 3 provides that for purposes of federal statutes,
regulations, and rulings, “marriage” means the legal union of one man and one
woman.

“Marriage – the union of one man and one woman – is a unique,
irreplaceable institution. The very fabric of our society depends upon it.
Nothing compares to the exclusive and permanent union of husband and wife. The
state has a duty to employ the civil law to reinforce – and, indeed, to
privilege uniquely – this vital institution of civil society. The reasons to
support marriage by law are countless, not least to protect the unique place of
husbands and wives, the indispensible role of fathers and mothers, and the
rights of children, who are often the most vulnerable among us. And yet, a judge
has decided that a marriage-reinforcing law like DOMA fails to serve even a
single, minimally rational government interest. On behalf of the bishops’ Ad Hoc
Committee for the Defense of Marriage, I express grave concern over these
dangerous and disappointing rulings which ignore even the most apparent purposes
of marriage and thus offend true justice,” he said.

The court rulings
were based on two separate lawsuits which had been filed in Massachusetts. One
ruling states that section 3 of DOMA violates the equal protection principles of
the Fifth Amendment Due Process Clause (see Gill v. Office of Personnel
Management). The other ruling holds that section 3 of DOMA violates the Tenth
Amendment and the Spending Clause (see Commonwealth of Mass. v. U.S. Department
of Health and Human Services).

In the Gill ruling, U.S. District Judge
Joseph Tauro commented that, “as irrational prejudice plainly never constitutes
a legitimate government interest,” section 3 of DOMA is
unconstitutional.

“To claim that defining marriage as the union of one
man and one woman is somehow irrational, prejudiced, or even bigoted, is a great
disservice not only to truth but to the good of our nation,” Archbishop Kurtz
said. “Marriage exists prior to the state and is not open to redefinition by the
state. The role of the state, instead, is to respect and reinforce marriage.
Thursday’s decision, by contrast, uses the power of the state to attack the
perennial definition of marriage, reducing it merely to the union of any two
consenting adults. But only a man and a woman are capable of entering into the
unique, life-giving bond of marriage, with all of its specific responsibilities.
Protecting marriage as only the union of one man and one woman is not merely a
legitimate, but a vital government interest.”

The USCCB Office of General
Counsel noted that the two court rulings are mistaken, both on the basis of the
unique meaning of marriage, and because nothing in the Constitution forbids
Congress from defining “marriage” – as that term is used in federal statutes,
regulations, and rulings—as the union of one man and one
woman.-Keywords: marriage, DOMA, Archbishop Joseph Kurtz, United States
Conference of Catholic Bishops, USCCB, Constitution, Fifth Amendment, Tenth
Amendment, Joseph Tauro

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